The landscape industry is often described as a people business. Similarly, the military depends on teamwork and people working together efficiently.
“Both rely on trust, communication, and accountability,” says Mike Felts, division vice president for Ruppert Landscape, based in Laytonsville, Maryland. “In the military, you depend on your unit to get the mission done safely. In landscaping, safety is just as important. At the end of the day, we want everyone to return home to their loved ones safely. You’re also depending on your team to work together to deliver quality work efficiently. When everyone knows their role and has each other’s back, the team thrives, whether that’s in the military or on a job site.”
Thanks to these parallels, many veterans have been able to make a positive impact within the lawn and landscape companies they work for.
How Veterans Thrive in the Landscape Industry
Joe Lewis, VP of implementation for Monarch Landscape Management, based in Houston, Texas, says he decided to explore to the landscape industry after seeing how closely it mirrored the structure and team focus of the Marine Corps.
Lewis served 19 years in the Marine Corps and now leads operational and organizational implementation across Monarch’s branches, aligning people and processes to ensure consistent execution. He says his new mission is client satisfaction and puts his people first.
“I feel veterans bring a tolerance for stress,” Lewis says. “So, with a tolerance to it, veterans are able to remain disciplined and adaptable and still have a mission-first, people-first mentality,” Lewis says.
After serving six years in the Army infantry, Felts was encouraged to check out Ruppert Landscape, even though it wasn’t something he planned on pursuing.
“But after meeting the team, I was struck by how much I liked the people and the culture,” Felts says. “As I learned more about the job and the career growth it offered, I started to see real potential. Then, after spending more time with the team, I realized I’d found a group that reminded me a lot of the guys in my unit — hardworking, supportive, and driven.”
Jesus Guiterrez, director of administration for United Veterans Construction and Landscape Solutions, Inc., based in Fort Worth, Texas, says after serving 20+ years in the Army, he was attracted to United Veterans because of their structure and purpose. As a human resource specialist in the Army, his responsibility was to ensure each service member was taking care of each other, and he says in his current role it is much the same.
“For me, it’s all about staying in the fight,” Guiterrez says. “Staying in the fight is just basically not giving up. I served in three different deployments, and it was pretty rough, but I stayed positive. To me, not giving up means staying engaged in the success of the team. I don’t think we can be successful in an organization as an individual. As a team member, you must stay engaged with the functions of the team.”
Dan Smalt, Safety, Health, Environment, and Procurement (SHEP) team safety workshop assistant for Senske Family of Companies, headquartered in Coppell, Texas, ended up in the industry after serving over 20 years in the Navy as an interior communications electrician. He had been working at a home appliance repair company when a friend recommended that he join Blades of Green.
“He insisted that there are many more opportunities in lawn care and pest control than there are in appliance repair, and the work was more fulfilling,” Smalt says. “As it turns out, he was right.”
Now, Smalt travels to branch locations across the country to conduct safety workshops, analyzes company vehicle accidents and workplace injuries, and creates SOPs for the company.
How to Tap Into Veterans’ Efficiency Mindset
If you have veterans on your team or are looking to hire veterans, make sure you are tapping into their full potential.
Guiterrez recommends taking the time to understand veterans’ backgrounds, responsibilities, and if they had any special duties while serving.
“I was human resources, but I was also airborne,” Guiterrez says. “I jumped out of planes. I was assigned to the 82nd. I was part of a rapid redeployment force. The way I trained was completely different. I had to train my mind and my body a certain way in order for me to be ready at all times. So that’s going to add value possibly to a position that I’m applying for.”
Guiterrez also says there is a major difference between a fully retired veteran who spent a large percentage of their working life in the military versus the non-fully retired veterans.
Smalt adds that veterans are versatile when it comes to work assignments and responsibilities.
“When given an assignment, they will put everything they have into successfully completing it,” Smalt says. “They can observe processes and give recommendations on what should be explored to improve them. They rarely complain and have a lot of pride in everything they do!”
Felts encourages giving veterans the opportunity to lead and contribute ideas.
“Veterans thrive when they understand the mission and can see how their experience fits into it and how they can contribute,” Felts says. “Encourage them to use their team building skills and lean into things like safety training, checklists, briefings and debriefs, which can make a big difference in how teams operate.”
One instance of this was when Smalt was tasked with reviewing the company’s audit program.
“We combined a safety compliance inspection checklist and the branch audit program and now have a much more robust program we named the ‘Safety Workshop,’” Smalt says. “We review and update the safety workshop annually to make sure we meet all new safety requirements, and we have created a monthly branch safety check program to provide them with an effective tool to regularly monitor their changing safety environment.”
Lewis says when you provide veterans with structure, clear goals and autonomy, they’ll find ways to make your operation better than you thought possible. He recommends implementing tactical decision games.
“I feel that if companies would ask their veterans some more questions, like, ‘Hey, here are some things we’re dealing with. Walk me through how you would handle this and why,’ that’s how they’ll uncover more of the skill sets that these military people have,” Lewis says.
Join the Veterans in Landscape Network here!
